The al Choucha camp: a first stop for foreign workers fleeing Libya

Thousands of foreign workers fleeing the unrest in Libya have made their way to the al Choucha camp, seven kilometres away from Libya's border with Tunisia. Some 15,000 people are now waiting to find out when they can return home.

Whether they're Tunisian, Bangladeshi, Moroccan or Nigerian, all the residents at the Choucha refugee camp tell the same story: they left Libya fleeing the threat of a civil war, giving up the jobs that allowed them to send home precious resources.

Caught up in a popular revolt against longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi, Tunisians young and old have been streaming to the border for nearly two weeks to offer the refugees food and comfort.

But the contrast couldn’t be greater between the Egyptians, whose interim leaders have provided air lifts to take them home, and the Bangladeshis, whose government is reportedly struggling with a response to their plight. At this point no one can say for sure how many of their compatriots are still waiting to cross the border.